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Troy weight probably takes its name from the French market town of Troyes in France where English merchants traded at least as early as the early 9th century. Troy weights were used in England by apothecaries and jewelers. The troy pound is no longer in general use or legal unit for trade. In the UK, the use of the troy pound was abolished on January 6, 1879 by the WMA Weights and Measures Act of 1878, though the troy ounce was retained. The troy ounce is still used for measurements of precious metals such as gold, silver, and platinum, and sometimes gems such as opals. This pound troy was used by Ferdinand R. Hassler while surveying the US Atlantic Coast in the early 19th century. Hassler, a Swiss immigrant, was appointed as the first Superintendent of the Survey of the Coast by President Madison in 1816. Many of the instruments Hassler used during the survey were of his own invention or improvements on existing instruments. In 1830, Hassler became the first head of the Office of Weights and Measures within the Department of the Treasury, responsible for regulating the standards of weights and measures throughout the United States. These duties would later be transferred to the National Bureau of Standards upon its founding in 1901. Hassler is considered a forefather of NIST for his early metrology work for the federal government.
